{"id":1995,"date":"2024-02-15T18:38:00","date_gmt":"2024-02-15T18:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leyton.majjane.agency\/ca\/post\/patents-sred-building-a-strategy-for-your-rd-efforts\/"},"modified":"2024-02-15T18:38:00","modified_gmt":"2024-02-15T18:38:00","slug":"patents-sred-building-a-strategy-for-your-rd-efforts","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/leyton.com\/ca\/en\/insights\/articles\/patents-sred-building-a-strategy-for-your-rd-efforts\/","title":{"rendered":"Patents & SR&ED: Building a strategy for your R&D efforts"},"content":{"rendered":"

We often hear how important filing patents <\/strong>is for protecting innovation. However, in addition to patents, there is another program that encourages Canadian companies to further their innovative projects through tax incentives via the Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) program<\/strong>. Here’s what you need to know about patents and SR&ED:<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

What are patents?<\/h2>\n
<\/div>\n

Innovation is a driving force for economic growth, competitiveness, and problem-solving and it is at the heart of continued success of a company. Innovative ideas could be protected through legal documents known as patents<\/strong>. Patents are filed with a government patent office to seek exclusive rights to an invention; and are used to protect intellectual property by preventing others from making, using, or selling the patented technology for a specified period (typically 20 years).<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

What is the SR&ED Program?<\/h2>\n
<\/div>\n

The Scientific Research and Experimental Development<\/a><\/strong> Program \u2013 Commonly known by its acronym (SR&ED), provides tax incentives for research and development (R&D) activities that yield technological advancements.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Difference between Patent Applications vs. SRED claim applications<\/h2>\n
<\/div>\n

Patent and SR&ED filings <\/strong>often require experts to assist companies as the process for both filings are typically complicated<\/strong> and time-consuming.<\/strong> Patent applications <\/strong>\u2013 In order to be granted a patent, the application must meet the eligibility requirements set forth by the patent office (e.g., USPTO, CIPO) such as novelty, non-obviousness, and
utility of an invention. Patent applications require detailed documentation describing the invention, including specifications, claims, and drawings which would involve both legal and technical aspects. Typically, the patent application could take over 2 years <\/strong>from filing to grant of the patent. Once the patent is granted, exclusive rights are awarded to the inventor for a fixed duration, usually 20 years from the date of filing.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

SR&ED applications<\/strong> \u2013 SR&ED submission<\/a>s, on the other hand, is filed with the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) to claim back tax credits for R&D activities conducted within a company\u2019s fiscal year. Eligibility requirements to get the tax incentives include: the work must be conducted for the advancement of scientific knowledge or for the purpose of achieving a technological advancement and that the work must be systematic investigation or search that is carried out in a field of science or technology by means of experiment or analysis.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Leveraging SR&ED and Patents<\/h2>\n
<\/div>\n

Although patents and SR&ED<\/a> are two distinct concepts, by leveraging patents and SR&ED incentives together, businesses can maximize the value of their innovation efforts and maintain a strong position in the global market. The following strategies are recommended for pursuing patent and SR&ED applications together:<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
\"patents\"<\/figure>\n
<\/div>\n